Description

Get ready for hectic, fast paced action with Geometry Wars! Take the role of a lone spaceship as you combat swarms of assorted brightly colored shapes which attack you with their own different patterns. There's the basic Pinwheels, the unstable Black Holes, which attempt to suck you (and enemies) in, the long, dangerous Snakes, to name but a few. Each enemy explodes in a dazzling shower of sparks, and it can quickly become difficult to navigate through space as you try to avoid enemies and ignore the explosions.

Geometry Wars: Retro Evolved actually contains two games in one. The first version is Retro, which was originally included as a secret game in Project Gotham Racing 2. Retro features a 4:3 aspect ratio, and fewer graphical effects.

The other, more popular version of the game is Evolved, which was also included in Project Gotham Racing 3. This version of the game can be played in a 16:9 aspect ratio, and features more intense graphics and special effects. Also, you can only get a maximum of nine ships and nine lives, while there was an unlimited number in the original game. Finally, the playing area is smaller, not revealing the entire field, but scrolling has been added instead.

However, the core game is the same for both versions: shoot everything, and don't get shot or hit yourself. You control your ship with the left analog stick, and fire your weapon in any direction by using the right analog stick. Your ship's weapon automatically upgrades every 2,500 points, to help you destroy ships more quickly. here are also 'smart bombs', which can be activated by using either the L or R trigger button. Smart Bombs clear the field of all enemies - however, many more will quickly take their place!

Trivia

1001 Video Games

Controversy

Soon after the game's Xbox 360 release, PC clones started appearing on the web. Developer Bizarre Creations targeted one game in particular: Grid Wars. They wrote a letter to the developer, requesting the removal of the download citing IP infringement. At the same time, they put out a statement that called for better intellectual property protection and more originality from developers.

In response, one of the developers of the clone, Mark Incitti, said he offered to change Grid Wars' name and look and even include in-game disclaimers and links to the original developer's webpage. He heard no answer until he received an e-mail demanding to remove the game:

Incitti said:

"I appreciate their position," [...] "I understand that they need to protect their ideas (or their particular amalgam of pre-existing ideas) - is anything new really?" [...] "I don't know if legally they have the right to shut it down - but I took it down out of respect for their developers and the cool work they do. I don't really think it is affecting their sales on Xbox 360 - but if they do want to move into the PC market then it's better if the confusion is cleared up," [...] "I hope that they are approaching the rest of the 'clone' makers with a [cease and desist] stance," [...] "My game may have been popular, but there were several others that had gameplay that was closer to Geometry Wars than Grid Wars is."